


For Keeps

by Rebekah_Zellers



Series: Tadpole Series [18]
Category: NCIS
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-19
Updated: 2018-09-19
Packaged: 2019-07-14 05:35:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16034048
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rebekah_Zellers/pseuds/Rebekah_Zellers
Summary: Secretary Porter meets the DiNozzo children. How do they react to her? Which one of them makes the biggest impression?Tissues are needed in parts... while other parts will make you laugh.





	For Keeps

Secretary Porter walked into the Director’s office, her agenda was very specific and she needed Leon’s undivided attention. Making her way across the room, the woman of power stopped in front of his desk, surprised to find the surly man wiping a tear.

“Leon?” SecNav softened her tone while she investigated what exactly it was that had the head of a federal agency in tears. “What’s wrong? Your children?”

“No, ma’am,” Vance cleared his throat as he gently ran his finger over a picture that adorned his desk. The picture was new; the frame was gorgeous. It was obvious to SecNav that his picture meant a great deal to the man before her. “I just got some news,” Vance shook his head. “I’m sorry; what can I do for you?”

Trying to figure out exactly what was going on, Secretary Porter walked around the back side of Vance’s desk. Placing a folder in front of him, she studied the picture carefully while Leon looked at the proposal. Once the discussion was complete, the matter was settled and a game plan in place, SecNav pictured up the picture. “This is you, Leon.” Pointing out the obvious in the picture. “You are with Dr. Mallard, Dr. Palmer, Tony DiNozzo, Gibbs, Bishop and McGee. Who are these children?”

“The three little ones belong to Jimmy Palmer and his wife; Noah, Benjamin and Madeline. Over here, we have Tony’s family. This is Thaddeus but we call him Tad, Gabe, Gianna and Shelby. That is Dr. Mallard’s wife Celeste. Jackson Gibbs and Rachel Cranston are there; Rachel is the sister of a fallen agent, Caitlin Todd.” Leon smiled at the picture.

“The little girl, Gianna. Is she sick?” SecNav was totally captivated by the little girl in the picture.

“Cancer,” Leon nodded. “She had a bone marrow transplant; they just found out today that it is working. That little girl was so close to dying, and she was ready. You’ve never met Tony’s children?”

“No,” Madame Secretary wiped at the tears that had managed to escape. “I would love to meet them though; they look so happy.”

“I would suggest that you wear something comfortable.” Leon laughed. “Once you meet them, you are going to find that you cannot resist playing with them. Last time I was there; I was playing sniper with them. Crawling on my belly through the yard with a water gun.”

“And you had fun,” SecNav teased.

“I had a blast,” Vance snorted. “Those kids just... Well, they can tell you their stories. That makes a huge difference in how you view those precious babies.”

“You are totally taken by those children.” Secretary Porter smiled. “I think I will run home, change clothes and go meet these children that seems to have the Navy Yard’s heart.”

“You have no idea,” Vance snorted. “Come with me for a minute.”

“Special Agent Peterman?” Vance called over the railing waiting for a yes, sir. “Have you been out to DiNozzo’s lately?”

“Last weekend,” Peterman smiled. “My boys and I went fishing at their lake.”

“How’d your kids fair?” Vance smiled as he waited for the answer.

“Well, I think they came back with some better manners. Gabe really worked them over on being polite. They missed a snack because they grabbed without saying please. When it was time to start making S’mores, they had fallen in line.” Peterman laughed. “Sorta, why I took them out there; they were turning into beasts.”

Vance watched as Peterman slowly stood, his body obviously sore. “You got a work out, didn’t you?”

“You ever challenge DiNozzo? Saw that gym, he has in his house; challenged him and didn’t take into account that he had a lot more cheerleaders than I do. Tad took pity on me, but not mercy. He wet me down with some cold water, it came from his super soaker.” Peterman laughed. “Wasn’t bad though, felt good until he asked me if I was a man or a kitten.”

Biting her lip, Secretary Porter turned her head so she didn’t get caught laughing. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head. “They certainly sound full of life.”

“They are,” Peterman smiled. “Sir?” There was a pause as he tried to find his emotional footing. “Is there any word yet, on little Gianna?” The entire bullpen stopped, they looked up to their leader waiting to hear the news about the little girl that had captured all their hearts.

“The transplant is working,” Vance smiled. “Her blood count is dramatically improved, she’s up and playing. We have a way to go but it’s looking good; really good.”

The cheer that came from the squad room was almost deafening; that little girl was such a precious treasure. Every agent had taken the time to go see her while she was in the hospital. They never balked at having to follow the isolation procedures. Several of them had gotten together and put on a puppet show outside, her isolation window which had her laughing hysterically on many occasions. Balloons and flowers were constantly lining the small area just outside her room where the staff kept their supplies.

“I’m leaving,” SecNav smiled. Her mind was spinning with questions for Tony. How did he learn about Gianna? Was she sick when he found her? What about the other children? How was it that they came to be his? Vance said they each had a story and they’d tell it; she just hoped her heart could handle it.

“Megan?” Sarah Porter called to her daughter as she entered the house. “You here?”

“Right here,” Meg walked out of the kitchen with a yogurt in her hand. “You look like you have something on your mind. What’s going on?”

“It’s been a very long time,” Sarah sighed. “I’m going to see a couple of former NCIS Agents and their family.”

“You’re going to Tony’s house?” Megan’s face lit up. “Give me five minutes to change; I will go too.”

“Wait!” Sarah called to her daughter. “You know Tony’s family? How?”

“Long story,” Megan smiled at her mom as a look of worry and curiosity. “Don’t look so worried! When I was at the hospital visiting my friend Molly, I saw Tony and Gibbs. I recognized them from when they helped you find me when those psychos took me. Anyway, I saw them get all gowned up to go into a room and I was curious. I watched them with this sweet little girl; they were in there for hours. I don’t mean I sat there for hours watching them. I went to see Molly, spent three hours in her room talking, reading to her and things. When I came out, they were still in there. Gibbs saw me; he came out and got me. I put on a gown, gloves, mask, and then I went in and met Gianna.”

“We should go,” Sarah pointed towards the door.

“No,” Megan laughed. “You are going to the land of children, mom. Go pack a complete change of clothes, get a spare pair of shoes. I already have mine packed. The one thing I love about these kids; they take playing so seriously.”

It had been so many years since Sarah Porter shopped for a little girl that she forgot the pure joy of doing so. A trip to the local toy store, many tips from her daughter, and a few shopping bags later had the Secretary of United States Navy on her way to play.

“Megan!” Shelby ran to her friend as soon as she saw her. “I missed you forever!”

“I miss you forever too!” Picking up the little girl in her arms, Megan danced in circles while her mom watched with a huge smile on her face. “Hey! This is my mom, I brought her to play with us.”

“Cool!” Shelby turned in Megan’s arms and looked at SecNav. “You are bee-u-ti-ful!”

“Why thank you,” the lady of the moment, did a little bow. “You are just cute as a button! What are you playing?”

“Nothing, my brothers are busy.” Looking around the yard, Shelby tried to spot where they were hiding. “I dunno where they are at.”

“Where’s G?” Megan hugged Shelby tight. “I missed you both so much.”

“G goes to get ready for a tea party! Come on!” Shelby wiggled down and pulled on Megan’s hand to pull her towards the house. Turning around, the little girl ran back to SecNav and took her hand. “Come on!”

“Wait!” The mom in SecNav wanted to scoop up the little girl and hug her tight but she was a stranger and she didn’t want to scare her. “Would you help me? I have bags to carry in.”

“Sure!” Shelby ran back and held out her arms. “Lay it on me!”

“You are so cute,” handing the bag down, SecNav took the rest. “You are a great helper. I can’t wait to play tea party. Do I need to do anything special?”

“Not really,” Shelby giggled as they walked into the house. “DADDY! Megan came to see me!”

“Megan?” Tony walked into the living ready to greet the young woman. “Madame Secretary,” Tony blinked in surprise. “It’s been a while; good to see you. Let me take those; come in. What brings you here?”

“I was at NCIS today, I heard the good news and also heard what an amazing family you have. I wanted to come meet them; spend some time getting to know them. I think every agent at NCIS is in love with your family. When Leon announced to the squad room that your little girl’s transplant worked; they cried and cheered.”

“I think she’s feeling left out,” Megan teased as she started to unpack the bags with their purchases. “We stopped at the toy store, purchased a few things for the kids. You know the fun stuff bubbles, sidewalk chalk, silly string. Oh a couple tiaras and some lip gloss and a new hat for Gianna.”

“She will love that,” Tony’s eyes filled with tears. “She’s feeling better, but she’s also a little down. When she looks in the mirror, she still sees a sick kid. I got her a wig; I was hoping it would make her feel better, but I don’t want to upset her so I haven’t given it to her yet.”

“Would you allow us to do that for you?” SecNav whispered through the tears. “Let us give your daughters a makeover; see if we can’t brighten her mood.”

“Whoa!” Gabe exclaimed as he walked into the room; his body immediately going stiff and his hand going to his head to salute SecNav.

“Hi,” Sarah stooped down to greet Gabe. “You are Gabe?”

“Yes! Ma’am!’ Gabe barked. “Nice to meet you, Madame Secretary, Ma’am!”

“He knows who I am?” SecNav looked to Tony with some confusion.

“He’s a big fan.” Tony laughed. “This is Gabe and he wants to be a Marine more than anything in the whole world. Gibbs has taught him all the finer points of being a Marine.”

“A good Marine, sir!” Gabe’s eyes stayed fixed on SecNav.

“At ease, Marine.” Sarah winked as she picked up the little boy. “You are the best Marine that I have ever seen. You’re going to make your country proud!”

“Permission to hug, Madame Secretary!” Gabe requested with pure wonder and joy in his voice.

“Permission granted,” Secretary Porter hugged the little boy tight. “I heard that you like bubbles and silly string. I got you both and some sidewalk chalk. Did you know that Megan is my daughter?”

“Hello, handsome!” Megan took the little boy from her mom. “I have missed your hugs; I didn’t tell my mom that you are my boyfriend, yet. I think it will make her very happy; she really likes you.”

“Want to play?” Gabe hugged Megan tight.

“I would love to,” Megan took off with the little boy leaving her mom with Shelby.

“He is adorable,” SecNav smiled. “I would love to meet Gianna and have the tea party that Shelby invited me to.”

“Gianna?” SecNav walked into the little girl’s room. “I heard there was a tea party in here. Would it be okay if join you?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Gianna smiled. “I know who you are; my brother is a big fan.”

“I know!” Sarah giggled. “He saluted me; he’s so cute.”

“He really is,” Gianna sighed. “We don’t have anything in the tea pot; I can’t do that yet.”

“Well, I can! How about you come help me? Shelby, do you want to help me, too?” Getting a nod from both girls, the three ladies headed towards the kitchen.

Tony watched from where he was doing paperwork at the table as Gianna picked out which juice she wanted in the teapot while SecNav washed it out. Shelby carefully picked out the cookies and before long they were headed back down the hallway with everything they needed for one heck of a tea party.

“Was that SecNav?” Gibbs questioned as he walked into the kitchen. “What’s she doing here?”

“Having a tea party,” Tony shrugged. “Megan is on a date with her boyfriend and Rachel texted that she is on her way. I guess they called her from Megan’s phone; they want to double date. Meg’s idea! You should have seen Gabe salute Secretary Porter. I do believe they both blushed.”

“Picture?” Gibbs snorted when Tony picked up his phone. “Of course you did, it’s no wonder you needed that cloud thing.”

“I like your hair,” Gianna touched the curls of her tea party guest. “You have pretty eyes; they are smilie.”

“Smilie?” SecNav asked curiously.

“You get little crinkles by your eyes when you smile; it makes your smile full of love.” Gianna touched her bald head. “I hope I get curls when my hair grows back.”

“You are so beautiful,” SecNav sat in front of Gianna’s wheelchair. “Pretty soon, you will be strong enough to be out of that chair too. Gianna, I want to tell you about something that your dad did for you.”

“What’s that?” Gia looked a bit scared.

“He got you this beautiful wig,” taking it from the box, SecNav held it for the little girl to see. “He wants you to be happy again; to smile. If having hair would make you smile; he wants you to have it. The cool thing about a wig is when all your hair is back; you can still use it to play dress up. Another really cool thing about a wig is we can brush it and style it without pulling your hair!”

“Would you put it on me?” Gianna shook with both nerves and excitement. Secretary Porter put the wig on the little girl, but before she would let her see herself, she pulled some lip gloss from the bag of goodies she had brought the girls. Once she was done, she turned the little girl around and let her look in the mirror. “I look beautiful!” With a shaking hand, the little girl touched her hair then her lips. “Like a princess.”

“I have a crown for you, Princess. I have one for you too, Princess Shelby.” With a bit of lip gloss and her tiara, Shelby was feeling like she was such a big girl. “Will you go ask your daddy to come here for me?”

Running to the kitchen, Shelby stopped long enough for Gibbs and Tony to get a good look at her. “Daddy! Grandpa! Come quick! Gee is a princess and she looks beautiful!”

Tony and Gibbs stood in the doorway as SecNav wove ribbons through the wheels of the wheelchair. The tears weren’t hidden in that moment of time as they watched the smile on Gianna’s face grow. “Princess Gianna, you look so beautiful.”

“Does that mean you will keep me?” Gianna looked at her dad with such pain in her eyes that it broke his heart.

Picking up his daughter, Tony moved to sit on the bed with his princess. “What do you mean by that? Of course, I will keep you.”

“When I got sick,” Gianna cuddled close to her dad. “My birth parents decided they didn’t want me anymore. I thought maybe you wouldn’t want me any more if I didn’t get better real fast.”

“I want you to listen to me,” Tony took his precious little girl’s face in his hands very gently. “You are my child; my little girl. I will never, ever not want you. If I could make you get better faster, I would but not because it will make me want you to stay but because I want you to be happy. I promise you that no matter what happens in life; YOU are MY DAUGHTER FOREVER!”

“Even if the cancer comes back?” Gianna wiped at her tears.

“Even then,” Tony kissed the side of his little one’s face.

“Whoa!” Tad came running into the room. “You look beautiful, Gianna!

“Thank you,” the little girl allowed her dad to put her back in her wheelchair. “Secretary Porter helped me.”

Turning to meet the woman that made his sister smile, Tad stood with his mouth hung open. “You’re Secretary of the whole entire Navy?”

“I am,” SecNav smiled. “It’s a pretty big job.”

“You’re hot!” Tad touched the curls that framed SecNav’s face.

“Thaddeus!” Tony scolded.

“Hey,” there was a laugh that filled the room. “Leave him be, I like being told I am hot.”

“Grandpa?” Tad pulled on Gibbs’ pant leg. “She’s beautiful and a red head.”

Amusement crossed Jethro’s face. He wasn’t going to comment because to be honest, he just wasn’t sure how to. Looking from grandson to his former boss, he simply shrugged.

“Can we talk?” Tad questioned SecNav in a whisper.

“Sure,” Secretary Porter followed Tad across the room. “What can I do for you?”

“Well,” Tad glanced back towards his grandpa. “If grandpa proposes, just say no.”


End file.
